Michael Biggins appointed to lead Just Falafel's UK operations

With three locations currently trading in central London and a further three in development, Just Falafel, the Middle East's fastest-growing brand, has appointed quick service restaurant industry veteran Michael Biggins to lead its UK operations.

In his new role as Just Falafel's CEO for the UK and Ireland, Biggins will oversee Just Falafel's stores in Covent Garden, Baker Street and Hammersmith Broadway, while developing new sites in Charing Cross and Croydon as well as Cambridge. Under his leadership, Just Falafel plans to roll out 200 stores over the next 5 years across the UK and Ireland, and to elevate the Middle East's humble vegetarian snack to a healthy, diverse range of dining options, with breakfast choices as well as Mexican, Indian, Japanese, and Italian varieties alongside the traditional falafel wrap.

More than two decades spent in a variety of operational positions for McDonalds, and a previous vice president role managing half of IHOP's business in the US, make Biggins an ideal fit to streamline Just Falafel's existing UK operations and grow the brand into multiple new locations. As the author of industry guide "The Journey to Being a Successful Franchisee," Biggins brings tremendous insight to Just Falafel's franchise network in the UK and other key European geographies.

Fadi Malas, CEO of Just Falafel, stated, "The UK is Just Falafel's most dynamic market outside the Middle East, with queues regularly seen in our current, sought-after locations and hundreds of franchise requests coming in per week. The correct mix of human capital will enable Just Falafel to build on the promise we have shown in our first six months of operation in the UK, and Mike's industry expertise and knowledge of this market as a dual UK-US citizen provides a robust management layer to our organization."

From one modest storefront in Abu Dhabi, opened in 2007, Just Falafel has grown to more than 30 outlets open across the Middle East, including the Gulf, Levant and North Africa as well as the UK. More than 50 new locations are currently in development, and more then 800 franchises sold.